Nothing I Won't Do
by Gwydion
Summary: It was a trap, but it wasn't as if the three turtles didn't know what they were getting into. A near endless supply of Footbots, Rahzar, Fishface, and even Shredder himself had come to greet them. Only Tiger Claw was missing, but they all knew exactly where he was and who he was with. (Rated T for violence and mild gore.)


Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Rated T for violence and mild gore.

**Nothing I Won't Do**

The tight corridor was filled with the harsh sounds of the Footbots' metal bodies colliding with the walls and floor as the mutant turtle made swift work of his enemies. His narrow eyes were pure white, sharp and focused as he continued to make his way toward the end of the long hall. There wasn't time to be wasting on mere robots.

He and his brothers had entered the enemy hideout at least half an hour ago. It had been a trap, but it wasn't as if they didn't know what they were getting into. No, it had been obvious what sort of welcoming party would be waiting for them. A near endless supply of Footbots, Rahzar, Fishface, and even Shredder himself had come to greet them. Only Tiger Claw had been missing, but they all knew exactly where he was.

As the turtle rounded a corner, heading down a much wider hallway with thick, metal doors lining either side, he couldn't help but glance up as he passed a monitor hanging on the wall. There was at least one in every room and hallway. Shredder had made sure that they would be hard to avoid, not wanting his guests to miss the show. And as much as it pained him to look, it was impossible to pass one by without doing so.

There it was, the same view that was on every screen - a dirty room littered in blood stains and vomit. Tiger Claw was standing proudly in the center, a thoroughly beaten and bruised turtle chained at his feet. His brother had been stripped of his weapons, pads, and mask, leaving him looking helpless and unusually small. It was impossible to tell exactly how bad his injuries were, but the eyes that were always so full of life were now closed tightly in pain. But it seemed the feline mutant was far from finished as he grabbed his captive by the neck and held him above his head.

He quickly looked away from the monitor as the sound of his brother fighting for breath followed him down the hallway. It was all part of Shredder's scheme, using the images and sounds of his brother's long and brutal torture to make the remaining turtles lose focus. But he couldn't afford that. The others had given him a chance to break away from the main front, and though he left the two of them to face some of their fiercest enemies alone, he knew they could handle it. Right now, nothing was going to come between them and returning home as four once more. It was up to him to confront Tiger Claw and spare his brother from further pain.

Looking through the small pane of wired glass in every door that he passed, he suddenly heard the sound of more Footbots coming from up ahead. Blocking out all other distractions, he quickly readied for battle. His own weapons had been lost some time ago. While the poorly made Foot clan weapons lacked durability, he had needed to arm himself with something other than simply a handful of shuriken and some smoke bombs. As he would dispatch the robots, he made sure to trade out the damaged morning stars, swords, and katars for new ones. Currently he wielded duel sickles, and as the Footbots attacked, he aimed for their weak points with deadly accuracy.

Ignoring the metallic heads that rolled and sparked around his feet, he knew he had to keep moving. He wasn't sure how much longer his brother would last, and the more stamina he had to face Tiger Claw the better. But just as he was about to round another corner, he heard a sharp cry of pain. Coming to an immediate halt, it only took a moment before he realized what was different about this one from all the others.

Previous audible signs of his brother's suffering had sounded from speakers dotting the ceilings. This one came from directly behind the door to his left.

Unlike the others, this door was plain with no window to see through. In fact, a small name plaque simply stating "MAINTENANCE" was the only thing that made it stand out from the wall. His eyes narrowed. It was both ridiculous and obvious, something so ordinary that he would have passed it by without a second glance and yet, once noticed, stood out in it's normalcy. The Shredder had made sure this place was anything but normal.

Without even a moment's preparation, he lunged at the door. A part of him was unsurprised to find it wasn't locked. After all, no one believed that any of them would make it this far, and even if they did, Tiger Claw was waiting for them. But the turtle refused to give his opponent time to react to his sudden appearance. The large mutant had barely time to turn around and shield his body before he was digging his twin sickles into his arms.

Tiger Claw roared in pain, but the turtle wasn't finished yet. Quickly removing his weapons, he jumped out of the way as deadly claws arced toward him, his opponent's desperate attempt to gain the offensive. But he hadn't come here to play games. This battle had lasted long enough, and catching his brother's still body crumpled on the floor from the corner of his eye only further steeled his resolve. As a massive paw shot past him, missing him by a fraction of an inch, he brought down one of his sickles, pulling the arm downward with the blade as he raised the other and aimed for the cat's throat.

Blood rained down as the turtle hit his target. As Tiger Claw simply stared at him with disbelief, he quickly threw out his leg, kicking the dying mutant with enough force to send him hurtling toward the far corner and off of his list of priorities. There was only one thing that mattered now.

He quickly dropped his blood soaked weapons and ran over to his fallen brother, turning him onto his back and cradling his head and shoulders in his arms as gently as he could. A lump caught in his throat and his eyes filled with fear as he looked over his brother's battered form up close.

Cuts and scratches lined nearly every inch of his exposed flesh, and blood still dripped over large, dark bruises. His neck looked almost black from how many times Tiger Claw must have strangled him, and he could tell from the odd angle they lay in that both of his brother's legs were broken. The skin beneath the tight shackles chaining his wrists together was raw, and his shell was sporting a new crack.

"Raph?"

He wasn't even trying to hide the panic in his voice as he spoke his brother's name. Hard as he tried to be brave, he couldn't keep his arms from shaking as he held his breath, hoping, praying for a response, some sign of life. He choked back a sob as his eyes grew wet with unshed tears, but he suddenly felt his heart leap as his brother's green eyes slowly fluttered open.

"...M-Mikey...?"

The tears of agony turned into tears of joy, and he could no longer keep them from streaming down his face. He smiled at his brother as brightly as he could manage.

"Yeah, Raph. It's me. It's ok, bro. You're safe now."

He wanted more than anything to squeeze him in the tightest bear hug he could manage, but he subdued the impulse, not wanting to injure his brother further. Instead he merely ducked his head until their foreheads were touching, relishing the feel of his brother's shallow breaths on his neck, a constant reassurance that he had not been too late. His tears dripped onto his brother's face as he rubbed gentle circles on his shell. They would have to leave soon, but he needed this quiet moment. They both did.

"Took you long enough... dork..."

Lifting his head, the turtle looked down at his brother in surprise, but a small chuckle escaped from his throat as he saw the playful smirk staring up at him. With a deep breath, he calmed his nerves. His tears had stopped, and his arms no longer shook. It was time.

"Sorry for the wait. Now, let's get you home."

* * *

A/N: This was my second short writing exercise. I have a list of prompts I've collected, and I'm going to try and write a short story for each of them. My goal is three a week (though this week may be only two as I didn't start this until Tuesday). I'm hoping a bunch of varied, shorter pieces will help me feel ready to take on something longer again in the future. If I manage to keep up with it, I may be asking for prompt ideas in the future, just to give you a heads up.

So hopefully you can expect more of these in the coming weeks. Thanks for reading, and as always, critics and grammar police are appreciated!


End file.
